The Portland Trail Blazers and their superstar Damian Lillard made another spectacular comeback on Tuesday night. Despite trailing 17 points with less than six minutes left on the clock against the New Orleans Pelicans, the Blazers managed to turn the game around and come out with a spectacular 125-124 win.

Portland dug themselves a deep hole with poor defense in the first three quarters, allowing 30+ points in each period. The fourth quarter continued in the same manner, and the Pelicans were up 117-100 with 5:55 remaining in the game.

At that point, the Blazers’ defense finally started to click while the team proved critical on the offense as well. They embarked on a 16-0 run in the next three minutes and were suddenly back in the contest.

New Orleans managed to stay ahead until the final 10 seconds, with All-Star forward Brandon Ingram having an opportunity to close out the game with two free throws. Ingram, usually a safe bet from the line, surprisingly missed both and opened the door for the Blazers.

On the next possession, Lillard was fouled almost immediately and went on to sink both of his free throws to make it 123-124. Portland then got the ball back after the Pelicans’ Nickeil Alexander-Walker lost the ball on the inbound.

Lillard returned to the free-throw line after another foul and scored two more to make it 125-124. New Orleans managed to get off the last shot, but Zion Williamson failed to make it count.

Lillard was the star of the night, scoring 50 points and dishing 10 assists. Gary Trent Jr. added 22 points while no other Blazer scored more than 10.

“We needed some things to go our way,” said Lillard after the game. “B.I. misses two free throws. Then we come down back on the defensive end, and on the inbounds pass, they fumble it out of bounds. So some things had to go our way on top of us putting stops together and making timely plays on defense and offense.”

The post Trail Blazers Return from 17-Point Deficit in 6 Minutes to Beat the Pelicans appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Miami Heat got their first win of the season on Friday, beating the New Orleans Pelicans 111-98 in their highly-anticipated Christmas Day matchup. And they managed to do so even with their superstar Jimmy Butler not playing down the stretch because of ankle issues.

Butler rolled his ankle in Wednesday’s loss to the Orlando Magic but felt he was ready to play against the Pelicans, and ended up starting the game. The 31-year-old veteran, however, ended up spending just 16 minutes on the court in the first half before being shut down. He scored four points and added six rebounds and five assists up to that point.

Despite being without their biggest star, Miami managed to get the job done thanks to Duncan Robinson’s great shooting night. Robinson made seven three-pointers out of 13 attempts, leading the Heat with 23 points. He also added five rebounds.

Robinson had help in All-Star center Bam Adebayo, who had 17 points and four boards while being a dominant defensive presence. Veteran point guard Goran Dragic also did his part, scoring 18 points and dishing nine assists off the bench.

New Orleans was led by young stars Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson, who combined for more than half of the team’s total points. Williamson scored 32 points and had 14 rebounds, while Ingram had 28 points and three assists.

The Heat, who are now 1-1, will play their next game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. The Pelicans play the Spurs on Sunday.

The post Heat Wins 111-98 Over The Pelicans Despite Jimmy Butler’s Absence appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Despite NBA Commissioner Adam Silver recently saying that the new NBA season might not start until next year, the league looks committed to getting on with 2020/21 as soon as possible.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the latest proposal for the new NBA campaign would see a pre-Christmas start and a regular season that consists out of 72 games. There would also be a play-in tournament prior to the start of playoffs.

Wojnarowski reports that the plan was recently presented to the Board of Governors with the next step being the discussions with NBA Players’ Association.

NBA was previously willing to push back the start of the 2020/21 season to January if that would mean allowing the fans to attend games. However, with the coronavirus pandemic not showing signs of slowing down, the league quickly shifted to a different strategy.

Other reported changes include canceling the All-Star game and All-Star weekend and replacing it with a two-week break midway through the regular season. Also, the league is considering schedule adjustments that would see teams play multiple games on one location in the style of series presented in MLB.

While there is optimism around the proposed plan, implementing it would be a huge challenge due to the short amount of time. It is also important to note that NBA Draft, free agency, and training camps would still have to occur before the season starts.

There should be more clarity on the matter past the 30th October, when NBA and NBPA need to conclude the discussions regarding the modifications of the collective bargaining agreement for the next season.

The post NBA Eyeing Pre-Christmas Day Start and 72-Game 2020/21 Season appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Although the NBA previously planned to start the 2020/21 season on December 1st, it looks like that might not be the case. According to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, the league might push back the date even more.

During a recent chat with ESPN’s Rachel Nichols, Silver said that he thinks starting the new season at the beginning of December now feels “early.”

“I’d say Dec. 1, now that we’re working through this season, is feeling a little bit early to me,” said Silver.

Silver explained that the goal of the NBA is to have fans at the stands for 2020/21, which is why delaying the start seems a good option.

“I think our No. 1 goal is to get fans back in our arenas,” he added. “So my sense is, in working with the players’ association, if we could push back even a little longer and increase the likelihood of having fans in arenas, that’s what we would be targeting.”

The NBA previously postponed 2020 NBA Draft, which is now scheduled to take place on October 16th as well as the start of the free agency period (October 18th).

 The current NBA season is expected to wrap up by October 13th, when NBA Finals Game 7 should be played if it comes to that.

The post NBA Might Push Back Planned December 1st Start of 2020/21 Season appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Portland Trail Blazers and their superstar Damian Lillard made another spectacular comeback on Tuesday night. Despite trailing 17 points with less than six minutes left on the clock against the New Orleans Pelicans, the Blazers managed to turn the game around and come out with a spectacular 125-124 win.

Portland dug themselves a deep hole with poor defense in the first three quarters, allowing 30+ points in each period. The fourth quarter continued in the same manner, and the Pelicans were up 117-100 with 5:55 remaining in the game.

At that point, the Blazers’ defense finally started to click while the team proved critical on the offense as well. They embarked on a 16-0 run in the next three minutes and were suddenly back in the contest.

New Orleans managed to stay ahead until the final 10 seconds, with All-Star forward Brandon Ingram having an opportunity to close out the game with two free throws. Ingram, usually a safe bet from the line, surprisingly missed both and opened the door for the Blazers.

On the next possession, Lillard was fouled almost immediately and went on to sink both of his free throws to make it 123-124. Portland then got the ball back after the Pelicans’ Nickeil Alexander-Walker lost the ball on the inbound.

Lillard returned to the free-throw line after another foul and scored two more to make it 125-124. New Orleans managed to get off the last shot, but Zion Williamson failed to make it count.

Lillard was the star of the night, scoring 50 points and dishing 10 assists. Gary Trent Jr. added 22 points while no other Blazer scored more than 10.

“We needed some things to go our way,” said Lillard after the game. “B.I. misses two free throws. Then we come down back on the defensive end, and on the inbounds pass, they fumble it out of bounds. So some things had to go our way on top of us putting stops together and making timely plays on defense and offense.”

The post Trail Blazers Return from 17-Point Deficit in 6 Minutes to Beat the Pelicans appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Miami Heat got their first win of the season on Friday, beating the New Orleans Pelicans 111-98 in their highly-anticipated Christmas Day matchup. And they managed to do so even with their superstar Jimmy Butler not playing down the stretch because of ankle issues.

Butler rolled his ankle in Wednesday’s loss to the Orlando Magic but felt he was ready to play against the Pelicans, and ended up starting the game. The 31-year-old veteran, however, ended up spending just 16 minutes on the court in the first half before being shut down. He scored four points and added six rebounds and five assists up to that point.

Despite being without their biggest star, Miami managed to get the job done thanks to Duncan Robinson’s great shooting night. Robinson made seven three-pointers out of 13 attempts, leading the Heat with 23 points. He also added five rebounds.

Robinson had help in All-Star center Bam Adebayo, who had 17 points and four boards while being a dominant defensive presence. Veteran point guard Goran Dragic also did his part, scoring 18 points and dishing nine assists off the bench.

New Orleans was led by young stars Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson, who combined for more than half of the team’s total points. Williamson scored 32 points and had 14 rebounds, while Ingram had 28 points and three assists.

The Heat, who are now 1-1, will play their next game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. The Pelicans play the Spurs on Sunday.

The post Heat Wins 111-98 Over The Pelicans Despite Jimmy Butler’s Absence appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Despite NBA Commissioner Adam Silver recently saying that the new NBA season might not start until next year, the league looks committed to getting on with 2020/21 as soon as possible.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the latest proposal for the new NBA campaign would see a pre-Christmas start and a regular season that consists out of 72 games. There would also be a play-in tournament prior to the start of playoffs.

Wojnarowski reports that the plan was recently presented to the Board of Governors with the next step being the discussions with NBA Players’ Association.

NBA was previously willing to push back the start of the 2020/21 season to January if that would mean allowing the fans to attend games. However, with the coronavirus pandemic not showing signs of slowing down, the league quickly shifted to a different strategy.

Other reported changes include canceling the All-Star game and All-Star weekend and replacing it with a two-week break midway through the regular season. Also, the league is considering schedule adjustments that would see teams play multiple games on one location in the style of series presented in MLB.

While there is optimism around the proposed plan, implementing it would be a huge challenge due to the short amount of time. It is also important to note that NBA Draft, free agency, and training camps would still have to occur before the season starts.

There should be more clarity on the matter past the 30th October, when NBA and NBPA need to conclude the discussions regarding the modifications of the collective bargaining agreement for the next season.

The post NBA Eyeing Pre-Christmas Day Start and 72-Game 2020/21 Season appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Although the NBA previously planned to start the 2020/21 season on December 1st, it looks like that might not be the case. According to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, the league might push back the date even more.

During a recent chat with ESPN’s Rachel Nichols, Silver said that he thinks starting the new season at the beginning of December now feels “early.”

“I’d say Dec. 1, now that we’re working through this season, is feeling a little bit early to me,” said Silver.

Silver explained that the goal of the NBA is to have fans at the stands for 2020/21, which is why delaying the start seems a good option.

“I think our No. 1 goal is to get fans back in our arenas,” he added. “So my sense is, in working with the players’ association, if we could push back even a little longer and increase the likelihood of having fans in arenas, that’s what we would be targeting.”

The NBA previously postponed 2020 NBA Draft, which is now scheduled to take place on October 16th as well as the start of the free agency period (October 18th).

 The current NBA season is expected to wrap up by October 13th, when NBA Finals Game 7 should be played if it comes to that.

The post NBA Might Push Back Planned December 1st Start of 2020/21 Season appeared first on SportzBonanza.